Boys golf: Ponies maintain lead in SEC

WOODBURY — The Stillwater boys golf team maintained its position atop the Suburban East Conference standings with a runner-up finish on Monday, May 6 at Eagle Valley Golf Course.

Cretin-Derham Hall place first for the third time in four conference events with a winning total of 285, followed by the Ponies (303) and third-place White Bear Lake (308).

Stillwater, which has not placed lower than second in an SEC meet this season, leads White Bear Lake 33-29 in the conference standings with Cretin-Derham Hall ranking third at 27 points with just one match at Forest Hills and the SEC Tournament at Troy Burne remaining on the conference schedule.

Cretin-Derham featured the top two individuals, led by medalist Michael Markley with a 67 and teammate Sam Udovich two shots back with a 69.

Zeke Roberts set the pace for the Ponies with a 71, tying Charles Looker of Park and Carter Spalding of Woodbury for third place in the individual standings.

Brandon Rickheim carded a 76 for Stillwater while Ryan Stanek and Dane Berggren each finished at 78 at complete the scoring. Luke Myers (79) and Parker Trobec (80) also delivered solid scores on a windy day that presented some adversity on the front nine for the Ponies.

Roberts was 3-over at the midway point, but made an eagle and two birdies to move back into red numbers for the round.

“We came back from a rough start,” Ponies coach John Scanlon said. “On the first nine holes were slipped to seventh place, but were resilient on the back nine.

• Stillwater also showed off its depth with a victory in the JV competition on the same course. The Ponies posted a score of 315 to finish 17 shots ahead of runner-up Cretin-Derham Hall (332) and the rest of the field. Tyler Coleman and Jeremiah Giacomini led the way with matching 78s and John Lillie added a 79.

Team standings

1. Cretin-Derham Hall 285; 2. Stillwater 303; 3. White Bear Lake 308; 4. Park 311; 5. Mounds View 319; 6. Forest Lake 322; 7. East Ridge 328; 8. Roseville 328; 9. Woodbury 333; 10. Irondale 336.

Stillwater results (par 72)

Zeke Roberts 71, Brendon Rickheim 76, Ryan Stanek 78, Dane Berggren 78, Luke Myers 79 and Parker Trobec 80. Medalist — 1. Michael Markley (C-DH) 67.

SEC standings

1. Stillwater 33; 2. White Bear Lake 29; 3. Cretin-Derham Hall 27; 4. Park 24; 5. Mounds View 18; 6. East Ridge 16; 7, tie, Irondale 10 and Woodbury 10; 9. Forest Lake 7; 10. Roseville 5.

Contact Stuart Groskreutz at stuart.groskreutz@apgecm.com